Friction draft gear



' Y 161 ,l 2 March l, 1927. E' G. GOODWIN. 9 l l FRI GTION DRAFT GEAR Filed Jan. s, 1922 ..5 3 sx-.ezetssheet 1 ff- 1l M215/ if Fig. a i

|%VENTOR l BY ,Q

ATTORNEY March 1927.

E.' G. GoonwlN FRICTION DRAFT GEAR 3 Sheets-sheet a Filed Jan 5. 1922 wf ma N ma v INV NTOR M 0.," l

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ATTORNEY March 1 y E; G; l

FRICTION DRAFT VGEAR *new `ATTORNEY Patented Mar. 1, 1927.

iin-irse STATES ,PATENT oFFlcE.

ERNEST G VGOODWIN, OF BROOKLYN, NEV YORK, ASSIGNOR TO STANDARD COUPLER CO., OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEX/V JERSEY.

EMOTION DRAFT GEAR.

Application led. January 5, 1922. Serial No. 527,066.

This invention relates to draft gears and, more particularly, in some of its more important features to that type of apparatus commonly known as friction draft gears particularly adaptedand designed for use in connection with railway cars.

`A general object of the invention is to improve and perfect draft gears of the class mentionedwhereby the same functions more satisfactorily in use, and more Veffectively withstands the shocks andv stresses incidentto severe usage to which apparatus' of'this class is subjected in service.

Another object of the invention is to provide improved construction for draft gears of the class mentioned, whereby it is possible to employ springsof increased length and capacity without increasing the over-all dimensions of the gear assembly.

Still another object is to provide a draft gear of improved and sturdy construction and capable of assembly into an operative lself-contained and self-sustaining portable unit which is easily transported from place to place and applied in operative position on a car'or removed therefrom without use of special tools or apparatus.

Another object of the invention is to provide a draft lgear of the friction type having a spring barrel with reinforcements of improved design combining to brace and strengthen the structure so as to withstand shocks and stresses incident to hard usage while, at the saine time, keeping the gear well within the dimensional limits fixed by standard practice. v

Other objects will be in part obvious in connection with the accompanying detailed description and in part pointed out in connection therewith.

The invention accordingly comprises the features of construction combinations o'f ele'F ments, and arrangement of parts, which will be exemplified in the constructions hereinafter set forth and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings wherein an illustrative but preferred embodiment of the invention is shown, i

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a friction draft gear unit constructed in accordance i'vith this invention;

2 is a top planview thereof; y

6 is a trent 'elevatien of the barrel with thesprings and other operative parts removed therefrom;

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal section through the draft gear unit taken approximately on the line 4 -4 of Figj, looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 5 is a transverse composite section taken approximately on the line 5 5 of Fig. 2, looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 6 is a transverse sectionon the line 6 6 of Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the arrows;

` Fig. 7' is a detail plan view of one of th side friction blocks; and i' Fig. 8 is a detail front elevational view of the friction box.

- Referring to the drawing for a detailed description of the embodiment of the invention shown, the principal operative elements of the draft gear include a spring barrel A, a friction box B, secured to the forward end or mouth of the spring barrel, a center frictionblock C against which are seated the draft springs housed within the spring barrel, additional or side friction blocks D ai ranged frictionally to engage the friction box and the center friction block, and apfollo`werplate E arranged frictionally to e11- gage the friction blocks D. l'

The Spring barrel A is'preferably of inte" gral cast construction having exterior top vand bot-tom walls 10, lateral side walls 11` and .a bottom or rearwall 12, cooperating to provide 'an elongated box or barrel .substantially rectangular in cross section. Extendf ing between the opposed external walls of the spring barrel are interior joined walls 13, 14, 15, and 16, which are joined also with the side walls and the top and bottom walls. Certain of these walls may be curved, as clearly shown in Figs. 5 and 6, to form longitudinally extending tubular columns arranged at the longitudinal corners of the barrel, each column forming a compartment for receiving and housing the draft gear springs. These columns also function to reinforce the barrel vlongitudinally thereof, and the interior walls also provide lateral reinforcements for the barrel. to the interior walls Vmentioned', there are interior walls 17 and 18 inwardly spaced from the respective planes of the top and bottom. naar' uit .inner and, @f it,

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In addition I spring` barrel and inclining. outwardly towardy tlie1.oute'iend thereof as' at 17 and 18 respectively. The walls 17 and 18, at their forward portions inerge into wall sections 19 and 20 lying approximately in the planes of the respective top and bottoni walls, and also merging with aiid.forining parts of the latter. Spaced outwardly from the rear end portionsiol' the walls .17 and 18. are relatively short external walls or iia-ng'cs 2l and A'22', united .at their lateral :edges with the top and bottoni walls and cti-operating with theuwa'lls 513, H, 17 .and 18,10 provide shortn additional;'longitudinal ltubular colvunins` for providing:additional reinforce nient of the barrel at its rear-or-finner 'end Where sliocks'and stressesare particn-larly Severe For further increasingthe' strength ancl-rigidityofthe rear end of` the spring; barrel, as clearly shown in Figs. lf andfG, certainof the wa'lls,1for eizainple, the-walls 13, V1l-,"i15yand16 may lbe 'constructed ext-ra thick and heavy7 adjacent the bottoni 12, tapering'oii" gradually Atoward their forward extremities. The Walls 13 and 14; also cooperate yWithwal'ls 1'? and 1.8 -intle .vicinity of the bottoni wall 12 to provid-e another andfcentrally` arranged longitudinal reinforcing-,'coluinn, annadditional function -of which yis to provide? a coinpartnient'for a ycen'- traldraftspring, Walls to reinforce :barrel construction. p

Draft Lsprings :are housedwvithin th-e corner 'colunnisandare preferably of the helical typexinclndinginner and outercoils 23 and 24,-woundfin opposite directionsl- The centrally arrangedspring is ofsiinilar constructionfin having' inner-and outerl coils Q5 andf26: Suitable' formations, including;` lugs 27 are arranged inthe' baseof the barrel for providing-.suitable seats for the-respective springs;y Also'apertureslQS niay be formed in thev exterior ofthe wallsI of the spring barrel, furnishing Ventilating and` drainage openingsifor the interior *ofV the barrel and permittinginspection and adjustment of the springs.

The forward end of the spring Abar-rel iis reinforced by a thickening or bulb flange E20, surrounding; the edgefof the external walls, and upon th's 'tiange-'is seated the friction bon B,`havingva peripheral groove for-receiving .said flange;y VJhen the parts have been assembled and the. friction bon is seated in position at the inouth of the spring barrel, holes `are 'drilled` as indicated at 30, extendingover the adjacent fac-es .and spanning); the space( between the friction `box vand spring;` barrel. ylhese.holes-are disposed only-.at diagonally opposite corners of the friction bor, being drilled fronrthe outside ofthe latter and terminating-short ofthe opposite-surface lofthe. friction fhoX. A rivetor lrey 31 is driven'whilelhot intofthe hole 30, and forced tight-ly ther-ein against the sides and bottoni walls thereof, so as to cause the hot inetal'to iiow to ysonic extent from the sides and inner end thereof, as indicated at 32. Since the key aperture througlr'the outer wall ofthe springbarrel iscircular'this rib of niet-al provides an internal .securing bead or extension which cannot be Withdrawn through said aperture. This construction..locks the key rigidly in securing position avoiding accidental reino-val and-insuring a 4lirni union'fbetwe'en the frictionbox and-1springI barielnot likely to get -ilooseunder severe conditions vofservice.

'if he friction 'bore-'isv forined` with inclined friction surfaces 33, and-foppi-isecl thereto are` corresponding l Yoppositely inclined .friction surfac-esofftliecen-ter friction block C, thu-s forni-ing; `a `/-shaped frictionv socket .for receiving i and copper-.ating ivitli I the friction surfaces oft-heside friction blocks ,D- which are formed to seat in contactino;;pesition with the-respective friction walls-1 of the een tral friction bloclr-andilfrictioznL bom As shown in Figsid andvtfr-iction surfaces 33 may ber crowned. orf' curved- Av outwardly slightly intermediate the lateral edgfesthereoff. thus-insuringa :inorezpositive sea-ting` of the plane frictionsurfacesofthe friction blocks D.

The central frictionblocl--is provided at the inner hase' thereof if Yith integral lateral extensionsfif unc erlyingz the. shoulders 35 of thesfriction bofrand forming `seats against which rthe, outer ory forwardv ends of the :si de draft' springs rest... Forvprovidingseats for tlieconcentrically arranged central springs Q5 and 26. said center -fr-ictionbloclrfis recessed at its inner face toV forniadjoining pockets 3G nndf?. These ipockets are preferably quite deep,- perinitting increased. lengiftlrand consequent increasedcapac-ity of the :center springs. `This increased capacity may-be obtained invia nuinber ofdifferent ways. forexaniple,-as hasheenillustrated in the drawings, these springs at the tiine of their application have beenplaced ,under greater-initial compression `than the vSide springs.- The pocket-8T may-be a continuation of Athe pocket 36,.-formed'in the bottom of' the latter so as to provide-iiidcpcndent concentric seats for the` re-lpective springs. lt will bernoteihthat the bottoni of these pockets-- are disposed `toward the forward or apex ofthe center friction block and of theregionof frictional .con-tact between the blocks whoa-'eb the reactiou'of the center springs aids-niateri lly in holding this center Vblock :iirin'opeilyzalignedzposition during' its forwardsand backward niovenfients.` lt Will'be understood that vthe inner springs 23 andQcou-ld if desired-he constructed shorter than-the respective outer springs 24; and 26, so as to coine into action only-after a predetermined movement'l of the central friction block. Such a construction will oillcr a'smaller degree of resistance for small movements of the gear, and. the resistance will be increased after a predetermined movement Ywhen the inner springs come into action. -It is preferable however in the present embodiment to use all springs of full length for a high initial resistance.

As will beclearly seen'in Fig. 4, the interior 'reinforcing and stitiiening walls of the spring barrel are discontinued at the mouth thereof and for a considerable distance therebeyond, for providing clearance for the forward movement of the central friction block. The lateral extensions 34 of' the central block are preferably slotted, as indicated at 38, for receiving ribs 39 on the interior of the spring barrel. These ribs, which are continuations of the internal walls 15 and 16, in addition to their reinforcing function co-operate with slots 38 for guiding and steadying the center block in its forward and backward movements. Similar guiding ribs 40 for the center block co-operating similarly with the latter, may also be provided on the interior of the top and bottom walls of the spring barrel. Ribs 40 are preferably integral with the barrel, increasing in width near the inner terminations thereof and merging with the inclined walls 17 and 18', and providing additional reinforcement for the adjacent regions of the spring barrel.

As indicated at D in F ig. 4, the inner adjacent portions of the side friction blocks D are cut away to form substantially parallel adjacent walls. This construction permits the blocks to move in operation for a considerable distance toward each other `without interference, and permits the use of a comparatively narrow center block,

For holding the parts of the draft gear in a self-contained portable unit for application in operative position to a railway car, or the like, or removal therefrom, without use of special tools or apparatus, it is desirable to provide a retaining device or bolt. As shown, this retainer comprises links 41 and anchored respectively in the follower plate E and the bottom 12 of the spring barrel. These links are arranged approximately at the longitudinal center line of the assembly and are loosely articulated to each other by means of the interlinked terminal loops 43, 44. This articulation limits movement of separation of the'follower plate E with respect to the spring barrel, but permits these parts to move together by telescoping of the looped portions. The retaining element is conveniently placed inposition at the shop, factory or other place where the mechanism may be advantageously assembled, the draft springs being place under such initial compression as desired, and the gear assembly confined within dimensional limits fixed by standard practice.

The self-contained draft gear unit may their be packed and transported with facility, and

the car.l

The operationA of the improved draft gear" in actual practice, and the application thereof to railway cars, being sufficiently indicated in the foregoing detailed description, and will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art without further explanation. Y

As many changes could be made in the above construction and many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the language used in the following claims is intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described and all statements of the scope of the invention, which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.

Having` described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a friction draft gear, in combination, a spring support, a friction box, anda key for securing said box to said support, said key terminating intermediate the walls of the support and being provided with an inner retaining bead.

2. In a friction draft gear, in combination, a spring barrel, a friction box adjacent one end of said barrel and having inclined surfaces, friction blocks movable relatively to said box and having inclined friction surfaces adapted for cooperation with said firstmentioned friction surfaces, the friction snrfaces of one of said elements being transversely curved the cooperating surfaces of the other of said elements being substantially flat.

3. In a friction draft gear, in combination, a spring barrel, a friction box seated in said spring barrel, saidfriction box and spring barrel being lformed with aligned apertures, and a key seated in said apertures for holding said box and said barrel in asseinbled relationship, and having a securing extension intermediate the walls of the spring barrel.

4. In a friction draft gear, in combination, a spring barrel, a friction box seated upon said barrel and having inclined friction surfaces, friction blocks movable relatively to said box and having inclined friction surfaces adapted force-operation with said first mentioned friction surfaces, one of said friction surfaces being crowned and the co-operating surface being flat.

5. In a friction draft gear, in Conil-)ina- Vtion, a spring support, a friction boxykey receiving apertures disposed respectively m diagonally opposite corners of eaoli'of said support and of said box, the apertures in Corresponding Corners being adapted to be in register when said support 'and box are in assembled relation,-and keys disposed in said apertures and provided with inner retaining members Wliereloy said keysywlien in place, are adapted to retain said bof;Y and support.y 'in 1 assembled relation.

G. .The method 'of securing friction box to a*supporting*element ofv a friction draft gear Iwhich isprovided with aligned aper- ;turesintl1e box and supportingelement and vwith a space .therebetween adjacent sai-d .ringl projection seated'in said space.V Y

n testimony wher-eetl aiiX my signature.

ERNEST Gn GOODVIN. 

